Virtual Reality Versus Auditory-Based Mindfulness: Impacts on Cognitive Performance in Graduate-Level Students.
Shannon Schoellig, Yvonne Monte, Julie Bush, Kyrra Marchese, Michelle Nunno-Evans
Journal of allied health September 18, 2026 DOI: 10.21091/jah.2026.03054 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Mixed-methods within-subjects study Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Sample size | 14 |
| Population | Occupational and physical therapy graduate students |
| Interventions | Virtual reality mindfulness-based practice (VR-MBP) auditory mindfulness |
| Measures | Cognitive Assessment Battery (CAB) PRO by CogniFit, Cognitive Test Anxiety Scale-2 (CTAS-2) |
| Topics | Meditation |
| Keywords | Humans Occupational therapy Cognition Memory Attention Students, health occupations Female Young adult Virtual reality |
| Key points | Significant improvements were found in short-term, working, and non-verbal memory following virtual reality mindfulness-based practice, and higher cognitive scores were associated with lower anxiety levels and testing in a controlled classroom environment. The authors conclude this adds to evidence supporting cognitive benefits of mindfulness-based practices and highlights virtual reality as an effective delivery model. |
Abstract
Aims: This study examined whether virtual reality mindfulness-based practice (VR-MBP) enhances cognitive function, specifically attention, memory, and reasoning, in graduate students compared to auditory mindfulness and no intervention.
Methods: A mixed-methods within-subjects design was used. Fourteen occupational and physical therapy graduate students participated in this study. Cognitive performance was assessed at four intervals using the Cognitive Assessment Battery (CAB) PRO by CogniFit. Participants completed the Cognitive Test Anxiety Scale-2 (CTAS-2) as a pre and post-test to measure self-perceived testing anxiety.
Results: Significant improvements were found in memory domains, particularly short-term, working, and non-verbal memory following VR-MBP. Higher cognitive scores were associated with lower anxiety levels and testing in a controlled classroom environment.
Conclusion: A significant correlation between VR-MBP intervention and improvements in short-term, working, and non-verbal memory adds to the growing body of evidence supporting the cognitive benefits of mindfulness-based practices, while also highlighting the effectiveness of VR as a delivery model.
Comparable studies
Other experimental studies on meditation, most cited first.
| Study | Year | Design | Participants |
|---|---|---|---|
| The benefits of being present: Mindfulness and its role in psychological well-being. Cancer patients (clinical intervention study) | 2003 | Mixed methods: scale development, correlational, quasi-experimental, laboratory, experience-sampling, and clinical intervention study | |
| Loving-kindness meditation increases social connectedness. | 2008 | Controlled laboratory experiment | |
| Mindfulness and mind-wandering: Finding convergence through opposing constructs. | 2012 | Two studies: correlational study and experimental study | |
| Mental Training Enhances Attentional Stability: Neural and Behavioral Evidence | 2009 | Experimental study | |
| Mindfulness meditation and substance use in an incarcerated population. Incarcerated population | 2006 | Quasi-experimental with treatment-as-usual control condition |